3.01.2007

Matt White, a journeyman pitcher trying to make the Los Angeles Dodgers, has appeared in seven big league games in nine professional seasons, and describes himself as "a minor league guy who's played winter ball to make ends meet." But he could become baseball's first billionaire player, no thanks to his arm.

He is the proud owner of a rock quarry in western Massachusetts.

White paid his elderly aunt $50,000 three years ago for 50 acres of land, so she could afford to pay for a nursing home. He had the property surveyed after he discovered stone ledges in the ground while clearing out a couple acres to build a home, and a geologist estimated there were 24 million tons of the stone on his land that could be sold for around $100 per ton.

"I guess you could say the property is for sale," White said with a chuckle. "We'll have to see how things turn out. I don't even know where to start. I'm in the process now of getting in touch with business-savvy guys, finding out how much to ask."

The left-hander signed a minor league contract last December with the Dodgers and has appeared in 254 minor league games, starting 136 of them. His big league career includes three games each for Boston and Seattle in 2003, and one for Washington in 2005, going 0-2 and allowing 18 earned runs over 9.2 innings. Ouch. Don't quit your day job, buddy.